“The Long Tail” … a phrase that has been imbedded into our consciousness by Chris Anderson, executive editor of WIRED magazine through his book, The Long Tail.

Since gaining popularity, the term has been used to describe everything from viral media, guerilla marketing and grassroots campaigns to niche marketing and blogging.

More than just brand exposure, using ‘The Long Tail’ begins by building trust with those most likely to both listen, as well as spread your message.

The “Long Tail” as Anderson describes it is much longer, much thicker and more lucrative than any of us may have initially realized. We need to explore new niches, or go deeper into a niche we may have already found.

People are tired of buying the same old thing – cookie cutter products and or services. We all tire of being lumped together with the rest of our supposed demographic. While demographic profiling may help determine broad trends, it will never reflect the individual tastes and nuances. And, though seemingly simplistic, the time has never been better to seek and find specialized niches and market to those hungering for such.

Five Steps To Consider When Leveraging the ‘Long Tail’ in Your Marketing

1. Messaging is Critical: Using the Long Tail focuses your marketing message on clients – treating them as individuals with unique interests and needs – new niches.

2. Focus: Take the time to carefully hone a message that’s highly relevant to each of your target niches. Speak to them on their terms, not your own. It is better to reach a few hundred people who are enthusiastically listening to your message than a few thousand who aren’t.

3. Choose the correct tools to support your message: Media neutrality is key. Should you use traditional media? Social media? Or a combination of both? Use your basic research and your communications objectives as a guide; consider the types of social and traditional media tools that meet your objectives. Look at ways to extend the message from a standard press release into multiple social media venues such as video and blogs. Exploring smaller niche sites, bloggers and other influential online contributors are also critical. These are the individuals and media outlets that make up the Long Tail, where a large number of highly targeted messages can have as much impact as a single, big media marketing campaign.

4. Provide valuable content: Understand what your clients want to know and deliver it to them in a relevant and compelling way. Delivery of valuable, relevant and compelling content to your clients and on a consistent basis says you want to relationship. You want to communicate, to understand their needs and be willing to provide relevant services and products to help them.

5. Take a position as a thought leader: Achieve a unique identity – demonstrating leading-edge knowledge. Make your potential and existing clients feel wiser, smarter and safer in your hands. Whenever possible, provide them with news, video, links and other valuable content. The more trustworthy your approach and the more genuine your shared interest, the more receptive your audience is likely to be.

Whether you’re a large corporate brand like Audi, IBM or a small business trying to make it in this economy – you need to recognize how marketing your business is changing and how you can change to improve your business.

What are the issues? What are the answers? See our 5 Steps to a New Marketing Model.

Testimony to the realization: You are smart and you know how to survive this economy.

You realize your best customers are being courted by your fiercest competitors, both online and by traditional methods.

You’re holding your own and keeping them happy.

You must have the service mentality, marketing know-how and fulfill a niche that safeguards your business from losing your top clients. Or do you? Do you know for certain?

Recently, Guy Kawasaki, former Apple chief evangelist, tweeted about a study posted on Social Media Today called “Social Media case study: Broadcast vs. Engagement in forums”. The study’s premise made a strong case: the traditional marketing concept of broadcasting a message at a market is less effective than building an engaging, interactive campaign which seeks the active involvement of the target audience. The study indicates a strong increase in views, and especially in comments, occurs when a promotional campaign that makes claims is changed to one that asks questions.